Covid has hit the high street hard, though many retail experts say the pandemic has simply hastened the decline of some brands that have been suffering for a number of years. Topshop, Debenhams (reopening briefly for a closing down sale) and Thorntons are just some of the big names to have gone bust recently. Leeds still has a brilliant retail offering, but the city centre will look different as people head back in for the opening of non-essential shops on April 12.
7. Carphone Warehouse
In March, technology retail giant Dixons Carphone wielded the axe on its Carphone Warehouse chain, closing all of its standalone UK stores including in Leeds. Outlets inside Currys PC World, in Albion Street, White Rose and Guiseley, remain open.
8. Cath Kidston
Cath Kidston closed all of its 60 UK stores in April 2020, leading to the loss of more than 900 jobs. The Queens Arcade store will not reopen.
9. NYX
Make-up store NYX opened in Trinity Leeds in 2017. It is now boarded up and is no longer listed on the company website or the Trinity Leeds website. The brand still sells in Boots.
10. Karen Millen
Boohoo also bought Karen Millen, closing its stores, including the one in the Victoria Quarter. Photo: Google
11. Warehouse
The Warehouse store will not reopen, after Boohoo bought the brand and Oasis. The brands will now be sold online.
12. TM Lewin
Formal menswear sales dived after the pandemic struck, weighing on already troubled retailer TM Lewin. The 122-year-old firm’s entire network of 66 shops closed last year, with the loss of around 600 jobs. The Leeds store was located in the Victoria Quarter